College Basketball Recruiting: Updated Rankings of the 2014 Classes

The biggest day of college basketball’s recruiting year arrived on Friday, with Jahlil Okafor and Cliff Alexander among four superstar high schoolers announcing their college decisions. When multiple top-10 prospects all choose within 20 minutes of each other, it's time to reassess the rankings for the top incoming freshman class in the country.

Duke was the big winner of the flurry of announcements, landing the package deal of Okafor and point guard Tyus Jones. After entering Friday with only one committed recruit, the Blue Devils now make a charge for the No. 1 freshman class for next season.

Who else is in the running for that top spot? Where did Alexander and explosive SF Stanley Johnson land? Read on for a survey of the 25 best recruiting classes in the nation, as of Friday’s momentous decisions.

24. SMU

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Key Recruits: PG Emmanuel Mudiay

Why They're Here: A year after landing his program’s first-ever McDonald’s All-American (Keith Frazier), Larry Brown scores an even bigger coup with Mudiay. A big, physical scoring point, the Texan is a consensus top-five prospect in the class.

Who They're Still Targeting: Continuing the quality-over-quantity theme, Brown is mostly focusing on two highly rated Australians: Dante Exum (who may not play in college at all) and Jonah Bolden (a slender scoring PF).

23. Oklahoma State

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Key Recruits: SF Joe Burton, SG Jared Terrell

Why They're Here: Next year’s Cowboys will need to replace lots of scoring, and Burton and Terrell are a great start. Both are accomplished finishers, and Burton is an impact player as a long-range shooter as well.

Who They're Still Targeting: The Cowboys are among many teams in the running for Texan uber-center Myles Turner, but they’d settle for 6’9” James Thompson as a consolation prize.

22. Virginia Commonwealth

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Key Recruits: SF Terry Larrier, PF Mike Gilmore

Why They're Here: 6’9” Gilmore is one of the rare big men who has the agility to shine in VCU’s Havoc press, while Larrier brings great length (6’7”) on the wing. Both will be intimidating finishers for an offense that loves the fast break.

Who They're Still Targeting: Even more size might be on the way if Smart lures 6’10” center Johnathon Wilkins to Richmond.

18. Syracuse

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Key Recruits: PF Chris McCullough, PG Kaleb Joseph

Why They're Here: McCullough is a superb athlete and great defender at 6’10” but is currently in some hot water off the court. Joseph isn’t as instinctive as some of the top PGs in the class, but he’s got great quickness and some impressive moves off the dribble.

Who They're Still Targeting: Syracuse has only offered five players so far, so Jim Boeheim has options. The Orange might take a flyer on a scorer such as swingman Kobe Eubanks.

17. Marquette

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Key Recruits: SG Ahmed Hill, SF Sandy Cohen, SF Marial Shayok

Why They're Here: The versatile Hill and sharp-shooting Cohen bring some offensive spark to the defensive-minded Golden Eagles. Shayok is the best pure athlete of the bunch and still a pretty good shooter.

Who They're Still Targeting: D’Angelo Allen would bring even more length and athleticism on the wing, and Buzz Williiams has his eye on several 3-star centers, too (including in-state favorite Trevon Bunch).

15. UNLV

Why They're Here: The Rebels win the shot-blocking sweepstakes in a runaway with two game-changing defenders. Okonoboh has very little to offer on offense, but Morgan has a stronger all-around game.

Who They're Still Targeting: Rashad Vaughn, one of the top shooting guards in the country, just relocated to UNLV’s backyard at Findlay Prep, and either he or new teammate Jonah Bolden could add some welcome scoring here.

14. Indiana

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Key Recruits: SG James Blackmon Jr., SG Robert Johnson

Why They're Here: Both Blackmon (an in-state star who decommitted, then re-committed in Bloomington) and Johnson have the potential to play either guard spot. Johnson’s an inch taller at 6’3”, while Blackmon is the more accomplished marksman.

Who They're Still Targeting: The Hoosiers are one of the many teams hoping to convince Australian PG Dante Exum to play a year of college ball before he heads to the NBA.

13. San Diego State

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Key Recruits: SF Malik Pope, SG Trey Kell, PF Zylan Cheatham

Why They're Here: Pope, a scary combination of power and speed, is the prize here, but he’s far from alone. Kell is a terrific scorer who knows how to pass, while Cheatham will be a force in transition.

Who They're Still Targeting: There’s no point guard here yet, but homegrown Devin Watson has some scoring punch to go with his passing.

7. Arizona

Why They're Here: Johnson is a freight train of an athlete who plays outstanding D. Victor is a more polished offensive weapon (particularly down low), while the microscopic Jackson-Cartwright has scoring punch that belies his 5'8", 150-pound frame.

Who They're Still Targeting: Arizona is still in the running for almost any big-name prospect you can think of—Myles Turner, Rashad Vaughn, Justise Winslow—so the Wildcats could climb even higher very soon.

6. Ohio State

Why They're Here: Russell is a combo type—one of the few who’s primarily a 2-guard—who can fill up stat sheets with anyone in the class. Bates-Diop and Tate fit right into the Deshaun Thomas/Sam Thompson mold of hybrid front-line standouts.

Who They're Still Targeting: This class desperately needs Myles Turner, considering the dearth of true post players on the existing Buckeyes roster. Whether the 7-foot Texan needs Ohio State may be a different question entirely.

5. North Carolina

Why They're Here: Jackson and Pinson are classic Tar Heel wing players who bring length, athleticism and impressive shooting touch. Berry is a terrific leader and distributor, even if he’s not primary-scorer material.

Who They're Still Targeting: Rashad Vaughn, the best shooting guard in the class by some estimates, is very much on Roy Williams’ radar, though he’s hardly essential with two great small forwards already here.

4. Kansas

Why They're Here: Whatever position Alexander plays, he's a beast inside on both ends of the floor. Oubre will take care of the perimeter, where he's a respectable defender and deadeye shot.

Who They're Still Targeting: In typical Bill Self fashion, the Jayhawks have a lot of irons in the recruiting fire. Any of Rashad Vaughn, Justise Winslow or Myles Turner could add another top-10 superstar to this already-imposing class.

2. Kentucky

Why They're Here: Towns (an Isaiah Austin clone) and Booker are two of the best pure shooters in the class, but Lyles is the real prize here. He’s the rare freshman PF with an NBA body (6'10", 255 lbs), and he's got a lethal inside-outside offensive skill set.

Ulis is a classic micro-point guard with blinding quickness at 5'9", 150 pounds.

Who They're Still Targeting: Uber-center Myles Turner would be overkill with Towns already here, but that's not to say John Calipari can't land him anyway.

SF Justise Winslow could pair with Booker to give Kentucky the smartest playing pair of wings in the country.